EQBaseGuide
How to record system audio on a Mac
Last updated: August 14, 2026
macOS has no built-in way to record its own audio. QuickTime's audio recorder and the screen-recording toolbar capture from input devices, meaning your microphone, and the system mix (the audio you actually hear) is not an input device, so they record silence or room echo instead. Every working method adds software, and there are exactly two mechanisms it can use: a virtual audio device your Mac plays into (an installer, an administrator password, and your volume keys stop working while it is the output), or a Core Audio process tap that reads the system mix directly (macOS 14.2 or later, nothing installed, one recording permission). If your Mac is recent enough, the tap route is simpler and leaves your normal output and volume untouched.
That's the short version. Below: why the built-in recorders come back silent, what each mechanism costs you, the MP3 catch nobody mentions, and the tools worth knowing about.
Why QuickTime records silence
Open QuickTime, choose New Audio Recording, and the source list offers microphones. That's the whole story in one screenshot: macOS lets apps record from input devices, and the mix of everything currently playing is an output, not an input. The same applies to the screen recorder, which is why a screen capture of a video call or a game comes back with picture and no sound.
Older guides fix this by having you install Soundflower or BlackHole: a virtual audio device that manufactures an input carrying a copy of whatever is sent to it. That advice still works. It's just no longer the only way, and for most people no longer the best one.
The two ways software can hear your Mac's audio
1. A virtual audio device
You install a driver that shows up as a fake output. You switch your Mac's sound output to it, and everything the Mac plays lands in the device, where a recorder can read it back as an input. It works on any macOS version, and it comes with real costs:
- Installation needs an administrator password, because an audio driver is a system component.
- You stop hearing your audio the moment you switch output to the virtual device, so you also build a Multi-Output Device combining it with your speakers.
- Your volume keys die. A Multi-Output Device has no master volume, so macOS greys the keys out; see Mac volume keys not working for why. Forgetting to switch back afterwards is also the classic "my Mac has no sound" mystery.
2. A Core Audio process tap
Since macOS 14.2, an app can ask the system for the audio directly. Apple documents this as capturing system audio with Core Audio taps. Nothing is installed, there is no password, and your chosen output device, its volume and your volume keys all keep working while the recording runs. The one thing macOS asks for is the recording permission listed as Screen & System Audio Recording, which is the system working correctly: software is about to read what you play, and you should get to say yes or no to that.
The MP3 catch, and other format facts
Three things about formats that surprise people:
- macOS ships no MP3 encoder. It plays MP3 fine; it cannot create one. Any Mac tool offering MP3 recording brings its own encoder (EQBase bundles the LAME encoder for exactly this reason).
- Apple's AAC encoder stops at 48 kHz, so lossy recordings cap there no matter what rate your system runs at.
- Lossless follows your system's sample rate, up to 192 kHz: ALAC and FLAC if you want compression, WAV and AIFF for maximum compatibility.
The practical guidance: AAC or MP3 for voice and anything destined for messaging, lossless for music or anything you may edit later.
Your options
| Tool | Cost | What you get | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| QuickTime + BlackHole | Free | Recording with only built-in apps plus one driver | Driver install, Multi-Output Device setup, dead volume keys while recording |
| Audio Hijack (Rogue Amoeba) | Paid | The recording specialist: per-app capture, scheduling, processing pipelines | More tool than you need if you just want the system mix in a file |
| OBS Studio | Free | System audio captured as part of a screen recording | You get a video file; the audio has to be extracted afterwards |
| EQBase (ours) | Free tier, no time limit | One-click recording from the menu bar to MP3, AAC, ALAC, FLAC, WAV or AIFF; nothing installed | Records the whole system mix, not one app at a time |
Prices and features change; if something here is out of date, tell us.
Recording system audio in EQBase
EQBase is a system-wide equalizer that reads the system mix through a process tap, so recording came almost for free and works the way you'd hope: one click on the record button in the menu bar starts a recording, one click stops it and shows you the file. Recordings land in Music > EQBase Recordings by default (changeable), with numbered names so nothing is ever overwritten, and the Recording pane keeps format and destination settings, live meters with clip warnings, and a history of everything you've captured.
Two details that matter more than they sound:
- What it records is exactly what your output device is handed, sample for sample, after any EQ you're running. What you hear is what you keep. And if every control is flat, EQBase's chain is bit-perfect, so the file is a bit-exact copy of the system mix.
- Nothing about your setup changes while recording. No output switching, no virtual device, and your volume control keeps working. Stopping a recording yourself reveals the file in Finder; automatic stops (a sample-rate change mid-recording, for instance) deliberately never yank a Finder window open over your work.
It can also record a microphone or instrument plugged in through Audio Sources, processed through the same EQ. Recording is part of the free tier, which has no time limit.
Common questions
Why is my Mac screen recording silent?
The built-in screen recorder captures video plus, at most, a microphone. The system mix, the audio you actually hear, is not an input device, so it is not on the list of things a screen recording can include. Third-party tools solve it by giving software a way to read that mix.
Does recording system audio need a permission?
Yes. macOS gates it behind the recording permission listed as Screen & System Audio Recording, and any honest tool triggers that prompt the first time. It is not microphone access: recording the system mix never opens your microphone. See our privacy policy for exactly what does and doesn't leave your Mac.
Can I record just one app, like a browser or a call?
Tools built for that exist: Audio Hijack is the specialist and captures a single app's output on its own. EQBase records the full system mix, so the practical route there is to quit the apps you don't want in the file, or mute their lanes in EQBase's App Mixer.
Which recording format should I pick?
For voice, AAC or MP3 are small and transparent enough. For music or anything you may edit later, record lossless: ALAC or FLAC for smaller files, WAV or AIFF for maximum compatibility. On macOS the lossy encoders cap at 48 kHz; lossless follows the system's sample rate up to 192 kHz.
Does recording change what I hear?
It shouldn't, and with a well-built tool it doesn't. EQBase's recorder mirrors the output stream rather than sitting in its path, so starting or stopping a recording never interrupts or alters playback, and your output device and volume keep working normally throughout.
Related
Per-app volume control on a Mac · Mac volume keys not working: why, and the fixes · Does macOS have a built-in equalizer?